The suspect in a fire attack in Boulder, Colorado, yelled “Free Palestine,” the FBI said. A Trump administration-fueled “shadow docket” looms over the Supreme Court. And Ukraine said it carried out a massive drone attack in Russia.
Here’s what to know today.
Suspect uses makeshift flamethrower and yells ‘free Palestine’ in Boulder, Colorado, attack
A man shouted “free Palestine” and used a “makeshift flamethrower” during an attack yesterday afternoon in downtown Boulder, Colorado, that left at least eight people injured, officials said.
The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office said on its daily booking sheet that Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, of El Paso County, Colorado, could be charged with two counts of first-degree murder — one with “extreme indifference” and one listed as “deliberation with intent — nonfamily — gun.” Soliman could also be charged with one count of attempted murder, one count of first-degree assault, one count of causing serious injury to an at-risk adult or someone over 70 and one count of using explosives or incendiary devices.
Soliman is an Egyptian national with no prior significant contact with law enforcement, and he does not belong to a specific group, two senior law enforcement officials told NBC News.
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The attack happened during a weekly demonstration to support awareness for Israeli hostages still held in Gaza, officials said. Four men and four women ranging in age from 52 to 88 years old were injured, a Boulder Police spokesperson said. Earlier Sunday, officials said one person was in critical condition.
Authorities have yet to formally confirm that anyone has died as a result of the attack, and there has been no update on the condition of the other injured victims.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, whose mother was born in a concentration camp and whose grandparents survived the Holocaust, said the attack appeared to be “a hate crime given the group that was targeted.”
The group, called Run for Their Lives — Boulder, has been holding demonstrations fairly regularly, sometimes weekly, after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attack on Israel, the group has said.
A witness said she was walking down Pearl Street when the attack unfolded. “I saw this big fire go up,” Brooke Coffman told NBC affiliate KUSA of Denver, and described two women “rolling around a little bit” after having stripped out of their burning clothes. Another witness said in an interview with MSNBC that he rushed to the scene and helped other bystanders pour buckets of water on victims’ burns to keep them comfortable.
Trump overshadows the Supreme Court as ruling season begins
The beginning of June marks the start of the traditional monthlong ruling season at the Supreme Court, with the next scheduled ruling day coming Thursday. But if it feels like the Supreme Court has already weighed in on several big cases already, it’s because it has.
Since January, the court has already issued rulings of some description in 11 emergency cases related to the Trump administration via what some have dubbed a “shadow docket.” For example, justices have already allowed for President Donald Trump’s ban on transgender people in the military to go into effect and have put the brakes on the administration’s attempt to use the Alien Enemies Act to deport alleged Venezuelan gang members.
In the meantime, the docket of merits cases has a relatively small number of headline-grabbing cases compared to previous years. Some bigger decisions to watch for include a challenge to a Tennessee law that bans gender transition care for minors and an effort by Texas to restrict access to pornographic websites.
Not only is the shadow docket changing how the Supreme Court operates. It has also sparked concerns about the court’s transparency and process. Read the full story here.
More politics news:
- Speaker Mike Johnson defended cuts to Medicaid in the bill for Trump’s agenda in a “Meet the Press” interview, saying that millions of people won’t lose coverage “unless they choose to do so.”
- Republicans are facing new pressure to extend Obamacare tax credits, which are set to expire at the end of the year.
Ukraine claims massive drone strike on Russian bombers
Ukraine’s Security Service said it has struck more than 40 Russian bombers in what would be one of the largest and most audacious attacks on Russian territory in the yearslong conflict. A source within the Security Service of Ukraine said the country targeted “41 strategic Russian aircraft” in an operation code-named “Spiderweb” that had been in the works for a year and a half.
Russia did not immediately comment on the bombs, but Irkutsk’s regional governor said there had been a drone attack “on a military unit in the settlement of Sredny.” Russian officials in the Ryazan and Murmansk regions also reported drone activity yesterday afternoon, according to the Associated Press.
Ukraine and Russia are scheduled to meet for a second round of direct talks in Istanbul. Read the full story here.
NBC Nightly News has a new anchor starting today. Watch NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas at 6:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. CT.
Read All About It
- Eleven people were hospitalized and a suspect in custody after a stabbing at a homeless services provider in Oregon.
- Moderna said the FDA has approved its lower-dose Covid vaccine — but only for people who have previously received a Covid vaccine and only for certain groups of people.
- Newark airport will reopen a closed runway today that has contributed to weeks of delays and chaos at the travel hub.
- A California state board recommended parole for Charles Manson cult follower Patricia Krenwinkel for the second time.
- Actor Devin Harjes, known for his roles in “Boardwalk Empire” and “Daredevil,” died at the age of 41 after complications from cancer.
Staff Pick: These trans Americans are saying goodbye to the U.S.
Denver parents Brandon and Candace are spending tens of thousands of dollars to move to New Zealand in July. The reason, they said, is to protect their 9-year-old transgender daughter, Chase, from the effects of the Trump administration’s policies and an increasingly hostile climate for trans people in the United States.
“You’re taught to believe, or indoctrinated, I suppose, in America that this is the land of the free and promise and all of that, and for my child’s rights to be stripped away for just being herself is gross,” Candace said, adding that she and her family feel like they have “no control over” their future in the U.S.
Brandon and Candace are one of five families interviewed by reporter Jo Yurcaba who have either already left or are planning to leave the country as a result of federal and state policies targeting transgender people and their health care. The families described fears of losing access to health care and identification documents that reflect their gender identities and increased anti-trans violence. — Brooke Sopelsa, OUT managing editor
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